Group D enterococci such as Streptococcus faecalis, are microorganisms which occur in urine and feces of man and other animals. The presence of these microorganisms in water supplies is a reliable indicator of fecal or sewage pollution. If Streptococcus faecalis is present in a given sample of water or urine, it is also possible that E. Coli, Proteus, and other like organisms are also present.
The medium of this invention is an improved medium designed for use with the optical detection system disclosed in U.S. applications Ser. No. 255,533 filed May 22, 1972 now abandoned and 461,249 filed Apr. 16, 1974 now U.S. Pat. No. 3,963,355, and in the improved devices disclosed and claimed in applications filed on May 3, 1976 by Charles, Jones, Staples, and Wiegner entitled AUTOMATED MICROBIAL ANALYZER Ser. No. 682,664 now U.S. Pat. No. 4,118,280 and MACHINE AND PROCESS FOR READING CARDS CONTAINING MEDICAL SPECIMENS Ser. No. 682,728 now U.S. Pat. No. 4,116,775. These applications describe mechanism and apparatus suitable for analyzing specimens for specific microorganisms using a plastic tray or card which contains a series of dried culture media contained in separate but connected cells, each of the media being specific to a single organism. When the sample is inserted into the card, mixed with the media in the cells, and incubated in the machine, the organism (or organisms) present in the specimen interacts with the culture medium specific to that organism and produces a change in the medium which is read by the machine to indicate the presence of that organism. The change in the medium involves a change in the light transmitting properties of the medium, i.e., a color change or change in turbidity. The change may be caused by metabolic activity of the organism, which, for example, may cause production of acid and a change in pH which causes a color change in a pH sensitive indicator in the medium. The change in the light transmitting properties of the medium also could be caused by a precipitate forming in the medium due to metabolic activity of the organism or it could be caused by growth of the organism.
The specific media designed for use in the aforesaid cards are all designed to favor growth of one microorganism and to inhibit growth of other organisms, are capable of being freeze dried, and can function in the low O.sub.2 environment of the wells of the card described in detail in said copending applications AUTOMATED MICROBIAL ANALYZER and MACHINE AND PROCESS FOR READING CARDS CONTAINING MEDICAL SPECIMENS.
We have discovered a medium which can selectively identify Group D enterococci organisms in urine when the medium is placed in the wells of the cards described in application AUTOMATED MICROBIAL ANALYZER.
Positive results are indicated by means of a precipitate forming in the medium, which causes a change in the light transmitting character of the medium, which change is read by the mechanism described in application AUTOMATED MICROBIAL ANALYZER. The entire test can be completed within 12-18 hours, whereas current methods of detection require from about 36 to about 48 hours.